Danko Jones Dig into the Vaults for 'Garage Rock!' Outtakes Comp

Danko Jones loves to remind fans that they're rockers. The band's 2012 album was called Rock and Roll Is Black and Blue, and now they have named their latest collection Garage Rock! (A Collection of Lost Songs from 1996-1998). It's due out on April 8 through the group's new label home New Damage Records.

As the title indicates, the album consists of a batch of lost cuts from the mid-late '90s, from before Danko Jones' proper full-length debut, 2002's Born a Lion. The tracks were recorded in Toronto, New York and Washington, DC. Interestingly, there's a song called "Rock and Roll Is Black and Blue" (which wasn't on the album of that name).

There are 17 songs in all. The tracklist is below and the cartoon album cover by Peter Bagge is above. In a statement, Jones explained that since these recordings were made, he and his bandmates have evolved beyond their garage rock origins:

If a band continues past the gesticulation stage, the term "garage rock" is usually rendered unusable. Back in the '90s, the garage rock scene, as I knew it, was a warts-and-all approach that favoured low-fi recordings and rudimentary playing over any modicum of musical prowess in order to glean some rock'n'roll essence. However, once a band got better at their instruments, songwriting and stage performance, the inevitable crossroads would eventually appear.

Deliberately continuing to play against their growing skill would only evolve into a pose. There were a lot of bands who did exactly this in order to sustain scenester favour. We did the opposite.

What you hold in your hands is a document of what we were and where we came from. We didn't know how to write songs and could barely play but we wanted to be near to the music we loved so badly. We ate, slept and drank this music. We still do. That's why we have never had to reunite because we've never broken up. After 18 years, we've stayed the course, got tough when the going did and, above all else, we have never stopped. This album is the proof.

Meanwhile, the band are currently working on new material for an upcoming full-length. Until then, Garage Rock! can be pre-ordered here.